Scan barcode
A review by dimayj
Deadliest Enemy: Our War Against Killer Germs by Michael T. Osterholm, Mark Olshaker
4.0
This is a book that's highly relevant to the current Covid-19 pandemic. It describes the threats and challenges posed by emerging infectious diseases such as HIV, Ebola, Influenza, SARS, MERS, and mosquito-borne diseases including Malaria, Zika, Yellow Fever, Dengue, and Chikungunya. The authors clearly explain microbial evolution and viral mutations and the implications of these processes on vaccine efficacy and on the emergence of an influenza strain with a pandemic potential.
The book was published in 2017 before the Covid-19 crisis. However, not only does it accurately predict many of the challenges the world is currently facing, but it also realistically recognises our lack of preparedness for such a pandemic. The authors present a tabletop exercise that explores how events might unfold when a pandemic hits us, and unfortunately, many of what they discuss bear close resemblance to the present global situation. The book ends with a strategy of 9 priorities to address the challenges posed by these infectious diseases.
I like that the authors do not express any political stance. However, the names of Dr. Fauci and Bill Gates appear quite a few times, and there’s a lot of mention of organisations, centres, coalitions, etc (with numerous acronyms). The last chapter is also a bit too wordy. In addition, given the subject matter, I would have expected some charts, illustrations, and a list of references for studies cited throughout the book. Nevertheless, I consider this is a timely read that lucidly conveys the vexing threats posed by epidemic-prone infectious diseases.
The book was published in 2017 before the Covid-19 crisis. However, not only does it accurately predict many of the challenges the world is currently facing, but it also realistically recognises our lack of preparedness for such a pandemic. The authors present a tabletop exercise that explores how events might unfold when a pandemic hits us, and unfortunately, many of what they discuss bear close resemblance to the present global situation. The book ends with a strategy of 9 priorities to address the challenges posed by these infectious diseases.
I like that the authors do not express any political stance. However, the names of Dr. Fauci and Bill Gates appear quite a few times, and there’s a lot of mention of organisations, centres, coalitions, etc (with numerous acronyms). The last chapter is also a bit too wordy. In addition, given the subject matter, I would have expected some charts, illustrations, and a list of references for studies cited throughout the book. Nevertheless, I consider this is a timely read that lucidly conveys the vexing threats posed by epidemic-prone infectious diseases.